Cadre
The '''Cadre '''or the '''Cadre Order '''are the warrior-priests of the Loris Empire. They wear brown hooded cloaks and wield a staff-like weapon called the Dakara're. Many Cadre, such as Shens Dravan, serve as military officers. Cadre functions include priest, apprentice, Prophet, monk, scribe, Chosen and elder. The Cadre respect harmony. "The Cadre teach that those who seek power never find it, those who who neither want it or look for it often find themselves burdened by it." - Shens Dravan "The Cadre always knew of those who existed outside the walls of our sacred grounds and monestaries. We accepted them in as brothers and taught them our ways. Yet we lived within our walls. Numbers and training drew the eyes of the wrong people. Many died in the massacres, only a handfull managed to escape only to live a life on the run. This served to push us into even further isolation. Somewhere between the grief and what you see now, the cadre decided that to be able to survive this galaxy is to understand the people within it. We made the mistake of hiding our heads once and we paid the price for our ignorance. I can only assume that this drive for survival tought those who came before me to adapt to the conditions of the galaxy." - Shens Dravan "A sect long ago formed in the Loris system. Many of whom were force users, but not like the Jedi or Sith. No they made those groups look like children playing in the dark. Her Cadre were so much more then they could ever imagine. The not only brought balance to the Loris system, they were in fact the system....and they were hers...completely." - Private thoughts of Jade Croft "Corwyn appraised him, and as usual with the Cadre, this man would make an outstanding warrior, but would be no match for a fully trained Jedi. Corwyn's guess was that Esran had trained these men just enough to make them dangerous to everyone but him, men he could use relentlessly, but never fear. More than likely, Jade had maintained that sort of dynamic. He had no doubt that if this man were given the order, he would attack, and Corwyn would disarm him quite literally, and the man would never once think twice before following the order. Blind devotion added to dangerous power made for exceptional soldiers, certainly." - Private thoughts of Jedi Master Corwyn Sylver You have mentioned Jedi and sith...now I am giving you a chance to learn a whole new aspect of the force...Cadre...." "I want you to take her, and destroy her...completely...utterly...when there is nothing left which remotely resembles defiance, or anger...or emotion...bring her to me." - Jade Croft "Deep in the undergrounds of the planet Vega ran catacombs, created centuries ago by the first inhabitants of the planet. It was here that the natives of the Loris system thrived....the true natives. Those who had been here before. The first. The were the prophets...the Cadre. They kept vigil over the system, tended to it's needs....saw to it's balance. In tune with the force they did not embrace the religions of either the Jedi or Sith. The force to them was above a mere religion...it was existance itself." "She is already part of the Loris system" Sibael continued "We had speculated before that when Esran placed most of his force powers within his self-created scepter that the system would start to draw on Jade's powers for it's sustanance. Since his death there has been change in the force flow...it has begun to draw from our empress more and more...it has begun to bind her to it's life force...and that is why we are here." "Yes. She has resisted outside influence and she did not leave with Esran's death as we feared she would. She, whether she realizes it or not...is already joined in part...but the process must be complete." "The solstice is a mere month away. At that time we must make the sacrifice and the Empress must drink of the sacrifice to fufill her destiny...this involvement with her sister concerns me." "It should be of no concern." Lent spoke for the first time. "Her sister is young and impressionable...she can be used....We will convince Ariel that Jade's destiny is to bond with the force within the Loris system...Ariel will convince her sister to accept the blood sacrifice...thus ensuring the continued survival of the Loris Empire." The Cadre is in essence an elite fighting force, however this statement does not do them justice. The Cadre is not simply another private militia, far from it. A whole religion and mythology has grown around this ancient sect. The Cadre was founded approximately five thousand years before the battle of Yavin By Konshuda Ramis, the first Imperator. It is widely believed that Ramis was a force user and most Cadre librarians who study the books of Ramis widely speculate as to whether he was a dark lord or a Jedi knight. However, the highly draconian nature of the books suggests that he was a dark lord. Around the time of Exar Kun the Cadre were almost ten thousand strong and spread wider than even the Jedi knights. Ramis’s lineage continued to control the Cadre until Lora Ramis refused to join Exar Kun in his fight against the Jedi. Poorly trained to deal with Force users the Cadre were helpless to stop a dark army from wiping them out. Less than one hundred managed to escape what can only be called a massacre. Low on funds and on the run the cadre escapees utilized the help of mercenaries to get them outside of the Kun’s sphere of influence. The mercenary group betrayed them to Kun and only six acolytes managed to escape the purge with the books of Ramis. It was the darkest of times for the Cadre and it would be a further four thousand years before the Cadre council found a new Imperator. In the Age of darkness as the remaining Cadre retired into obscurity, they worked on their hatred for dark Jedi, after millennia of seclusion the once proud and honorable sect had become twisted and hateful. Their interpretations of the now holy books became gradually more morbid and evil calling for sacrifices that made imperial interrogations look mild. Shortly before the battle of Hoth, Esran Croft resigned from the empire and denounced the dark side. The high priest recognized the event as the seventh prophecy of Ramis and swore allegiance to Esran. The once dark Jedi grudgingly took on the role of Imperator and only truly found his calling when he read the history of the Cadre and the books of Ramis. He knew then that he was the only one capable of healing the deep wound that tore across the heart and soul of the Cadre. The Cadre has a similar structure to the Jedi, unlike the Jedi they are more disciplined in their command structure. Trainees are instructed by the Priests and become Acolytes when they have learned the various martial arts disciplines that qualify them for the status. The Cadres lack of a defense against force users called for a change in training and structure to the Cadre in the age of darkness. Acolytes can only become priests once they have studied the books of Ramis thoroughly and learned the Dakara. Essentially the Dakara is a set of stand off tactics that involves the training of the cadre Acolyte in the use of the staff. The acolyte must undergo endurance training to help speed up reaction times. The primary threat to a warrior going up against a forcer is their ability to foresee an attack. The training helps an acolyte become faster in their attacks and in most cases levels the playing field. The weapon of choice is the Dakara’re, essentially a weighted staff of two meters in length. In one end is a heavy blaster. The staff is able to withstand light punishment from lasers and light sabers due to a built in personal shield generator. All priests carry a dakara’re including those assigned as Presidential guards. Shortly after the Cadre swore allegiance to the new imperator a mercenary by the name of Tak Strife attacked and injured the High Priest, He took this as a sign that he must complete Lora Ramis Third prophecy calling for the purification of the anointed one to bless the rise of the imperator. Tak fought bravely and died after he passed out from his extensive wounds. While he was out cold, the high priest sacrificed Tak to fulfill the prophecy of the rise of the imperator. Known Cadre *Arliess - one of the oldest of the Cadre, a Chosen, aide to Empress Jade Croft. *Triak Rylo - a very senior priest, member of the Cadre's leading council *Sibael - a very senior priest, member of the Cadre's leading council *Lent - a very senior priest, member of the Cadre's leading council *Shens Dravan - a naval officer, captain of the exploratory frigate Star Stride in 12 ABY